Suggestions for instructional improvement are offered for science teachers in this compilation of research summaries on specific areas of science education. This series examines the topic areas of: (1) higher-order cognitive skills (focusing on developing operational definitions and classification schemes for cognitive skills); (2) microcomputers…

The instructional uses of databases are highlighted in this report and their advantages as teaching and learning tools are emphasized. Databases reviewed are for storing, retrieving, sorting, and printing information and for manipulating information. Questions explored include: (1) how are science databases used in the classroom (covering…

Poetry was used in a college English class to teach figurative language, connotation, denotation, and the need for close attention to vocabulary. However, students were often bored by traditional poetry. Using computer programs like "Compupoem,""Poetrywriter,""Lifesongs," and "Haikuku," students were introduced to computer poetry and created their…

The materials described here represent the conversion of a highly popular student workbook "Sets, Probability and Statistics: The Mathematics of Life Insurance" into a computer program. The program is designed to familiarize students with the concepts of sets, probability, and statistics, and to provide practice using real life examples. It also…

This is a summary of findings of three studies of learning style in computer-assisted instructional (CAI) settings. In study one, learning style and math achievement data collected from an intact class of 23 seventh and eighth graders indicate that students' learning style preference changed after four months of CAI towards the accommodator type.…

Issues concerning telecommunications courses offered by California universities and colleges are reviewed with a focus on the progress made over the past 6 years regarding the lack of incentives for faculty to use instructional technology in their teaching, lack of coordination among interested institutions and agencies, and high initial costs for…

Designed to serve as a means of communication among life science educators who anticipate or are currently using microcomputers as an educational tool, these four volumes of newsletters provide background information and practical suggestions on computer use in over 80 articles. Topic areas include: (1) teaching physiology and other life sciences…

America is changing from an industrial age to an information age wherein a premium is placed on the rapid acquisition, assimilation, and use of knowledge. Instructional technology offers the field of education an unprecedented opportunity to emphasize learning, increase teacher productivity and make more effective schools. Educators must face the…

These materials on geometric probability are the first unit in a course being developed by the Mathematics Department at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics. This course is designed to prepare high school students who have completed Algebra 2 for the variety of math courses they will encounter in college. Assuming only a knowledge…

Despite the well-known potential of computer technology to promote achievement and motivational gains among social studies learners, there is very little reported use of microcomputers in social studies classrooms. Factors contributing to this lack of use include: (a) lack of microcomputers for teacher use, (b) lack of high quality software, (c)…

One aim of this study was to identify, in a group of unsuccessful college level problem solvers, the status and use of their declarative knowledge as revealed by students' attempts to solve novel problems in a pencil-and-paper setting. It was hypothesized that for some unsuccessful problem solvers, their problem representation could be improved by…

This 5-year plan is based on "A Comprehensive Plan for Instructional and Administrative Use of Computers in the Virginia Beach Public Schools" ("The Pogrow Report," completed in December 1984) and the "Task Force Report on Information Systems" (completed in July 1988). These reports document the importance of making…

The monograph is intended to offer educators a systematic approach to using electronic technology and computers with students having multiple handicaps. A model is presented which features a top down approach to curriculum with emphasis on developing age-appropriate functional skills useful in future environments. A training sequence based upon…

To increase the connection between educational research and educational practice, a process called "curriculum reformulation" was used to incorporate recent advances in research on learning and instruction into science classroom experiences. The cognitive demands of a thermodynamics curriculum were successively refined while maintaining…

The Scientific Theory and Method Project (STAMPS) is concerned with students' understanding of two areas of science in secondary schools. One is understanding what a scientific theory is, and the other is understanding the methods used in conducting scientific research. In the science curriculum these topics are often described as the process of…